During a surgical procedure, it is necessary to assess the amount of patient blood loss in order to determine whether a transfusion of blood or other intravenous (IV) fluid is needed. Unnecessary blood transfusions, coupled with over/under administration of IV fluids, are frequently associated with poor patient outcomes. Conventionally, during a medical procedure, a suction canister collects blood, irrigation fluids and other bodily fluids. The current methods for estimating intraoperative blood loss are inaccurate due to the difficulty of determining the amount of blood in the suction canister when the blood is mixed with unknown quantities of other fluids within the suction canister.
Thus, there is a need in the pertinent art for devices, systems, and methods for accurately and quickly measuring the blood loss of a subject during a surgical procedure.